Best and easiest Google Depersonalization method
-
Hello,
Moz hasn't written anything about depersonalization for years. This article has methods, but I don't know if they are valid anymore.
What's an easy, effective way to depersonalize Google search these days? I would just log out of Google, but that shows different ranking results than Moz's rank tracker for one of our main keywords, so I don't know if that method is correct.
Thanks
-
Thanks Rand, really appreciate it!
-
Hi Rand,
Thanks for jumping in and helping us all out. Your response is much appreciated.
Regards,
Vijay
-
I'm surprised at how well this still works, but it does:
- Use an incognito browser window to remove account personalization
- Use a query string like this: https://google.co.nz/search?q=your+keyword+terms&gl=us
With 2) above, you're removing the geographic bias of any particular region/IP address by searching in Google New Zealand, then re-geo-locating the search to the US. This will give you non-geo-biased results.
If you want to see how specific results look from a particular region, there's two semi decent options:
A) Use Google's Ad Preview Tool: https://adwords.google.com/apt/anon/AdPreview?__u=1000000000&__c=1000000000
B) Use the &near parameter, e.g. https://google.co.nz/search?q=your+keyword+terms&gl=us&near=seattle+wa -
Yes, this is one of many factors for de-personalization. Also, there can be many more hidden factors which we are yet to discover.
I have done a lot of research on this matter, I use a specific PC with VPN dedicated to checking keyword SERP ranks for my clients, as they are from many different countries and having a different target audience, we try to replicate the results for different scenarios.
I hope this helps.
-
So am I correct that logging out and adding &pws=0 is not enough?
-
Hi There,
In addition to the methods suggested for de-personalization of results, there are additional few more factors.You may also like to read a blog post I wrote on my website Impact of Personalized Search results .
Incognito window doesn't mean you have deleted history of the previous browsing, you will have to clean the browsing history and cookies.
Use VPN or proxy to get results from different locations and countries. This gives you best Idea about your SERP status in different countries.
I hope this helps, please feel free to ask more questions by responding.
Regards,
Vijay
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Best length for a video on a website
Most of us deal with UI/UX questions and SEO questions from clients on a daily basis. I was discussing video length with a client recently and I realized that he was in his video. This made me think about the thrill of seeing yourself in video might cause someone to make their video longer at the expense of UX. So, I thought I would put it to the Moz community. If a company is doing a "typical" home page "Explainer" video that tells about a company. This can be in the B2B or B2C sectors. I want to withhold my opinion at this point for the discussion.
Algorithm Updates | | RobertFisher0 -
How to keep damage low on Google after the change of URL's
Hi Peeps, Hope someone can shed a light on this and show a guidance if possible. We are going to move our sites to shopify and shopify's URL's cannot be customized to match exactly like our current URLs. What steps do I need to take so google knows the URL's are changed. Domain will be the same. Thank you in advanced.
Algorithm Updates | | cemalcebi0 -
Google Authorship and Hobby Blog
I hope that someone can help me come up with the best option. Please forgive my ignorance on this issue. I have a hobby blog and up until now I have not wanted to associate it with my real name. It is a menswear blog about classic American style. I was afraid that it may be a hindrance if I was ever looking for a more conservative career than SEO. I am now reconsidering this and thinking that claiming it may be of more help than harm. Which brings me to Google Authorship. My dilemma and misunderstanding stems from the fact that I have mutliple Gmail accounts. I am guessing that some of the newer accounts have a G+ associated with them. So my question is do I use the email that is associated with my blog or my main gmail that I use personally? If I do use the gmail associated with the blog will it then become my default Google plus profile? Any insight would be helpful. Thanks in advance. If any of you are interested the hobby blog is Oxford Cloth Button Down.
Algorithm Updates | | JerrodDavid0 -
Can a google data refresh knock your pages out of the rankings?
I see that around mid November 2013 a handful of my sites pages dropped off of Google completely. It was around the data refreshes in November, and while everyone says it doesn't effect that much I was wondering if anyone knew if it could knock some of my pages out of the rankings for a specific keyword. Note - we had previously held muliple listings for different pages on our site for this particular keyword. Google kept the highest ranking and knocked the lower ones off. See attached image of our keyword ranking history to see what I mean. DcJJM0M
Algorithm Updates | | franchisesolutions0 -
Is it normal to receive 2 mails from Google?
I filed a reconsideration request that was answered in less than a week. Subsequently I was told that no manual penalty was in place but various algorithm factors might be causing my heavy drops in ranking. Then I got a second email which was even more specific. This was great, really heartening stuff and a total surprise as it was very helpful. Is it normal to receive 2 emails from Google with such clear information? I have been very pleased by the comments they have made as it has shown me that they're more customer focused than I had been led to believe by all the research I had done pre reconsideration request. Has anyone else had a clear outline of what they needed to fix and has their site subsequently rebounded post fixing?
Algorithm Updates | | swimwithfishes0 -
Are multiple domains for my website hurting my Google ranking?
Hello, I currently have two domains showing up in google search: shwoodshop.com shop.shwoodshop.com These domains are currently ranked in the #2 and #3 spot, however my page is much more trafficked than the current #1 ranking. I am wondering if the fact that I have two domains competing for the #1 spot is hurting my search ranking. If so, what is the best way to remedy this issue and get back my #1 spot? I'm rather new to SEO and teaching myself as I go, so I appreciate the feedback!
Algorithm Updates | | shwoodshop0 -
Google's reaction to site updates
Hi, Is it safe to assume as soon as Google indexes updates I've made to my site that any ranking changes the updates effected will happen at that same time, or is there ever a lag time before these changes ( if any ) take effect?
Algorithm Updates | | minutiae0 -
When did the New Google Algorithm Come into Force in the UK
On March 3rd, the hits on my UK site crashed to 40% of the previous number. I am guessing it may be down to the google algorithm change:- http://wisestartupblog.com/seo/google-algorithm-change-february-2011-losers-winners/5081 However, I am aware this happened on 25th Feb in the US. Do you know when it happened in the UK. Could it have suddenly started affecting me on March 3?
Algorithm Updates | | MattBB121